Interesting Old Carved Whimsy with Ball on Chain Inside Cage bald Note: photo of painting frame

Note: photo of painting frame shows glare

What sold me on this 19th century snuff box is the juxtaposition between the  fineness of its decoration and the clearly hand-scratched "Mary

I always keep an eye out for older Acoma pots

I am pretty certain these wonderful hand-painted turned wooden pins or skittles are French and that they date to the 1920s or so

with no chips cracks or other flaws that I can see

Interesting Old Carved Whimsy with Ball on Chain Inside Cage bald Note: photo of painting frameAnother in my never ending collection of whimsies, and this unlike another I've seen. Inside the nicely carved tall cage is a five link chain that is attached at one end of the cage interior but hangs loose inside, terminating in a ball. Pretty cool! And skillfully done, quite a long time ago I believe. It stands on end, making it a great one for just setting on the shelf, with a bit of the feeling of an hourglass, or a pendulum, trapped forever from